Virtual Explorations

Exploring & meeting new people while enjoying the comforts of home. What an idea! Seldom tempted to jump on ANY bandwagon before, I've found this virtual world of Bloggers surprisingly seductive and potentially addictive ... (at least until I've had my fill and/or my friends return from the road) ... enticing me away from the keyboard with real-world activities again. I admit I've been a bit of a "hermit" lately except for this new interest.

Until now, the only thing that could capture & hold my attention for any length of "free time" was a book. I've always been able to lose myself in a captivating story. As a child, I visited the library often and eventually discovered used book stores. I counted school "breaks" one of the unexpected blessings of being a teacher, and have spent many a summers day lost in a good read ... traveling to distant lands ... meeting unique people doing extraordinary things.

Television and films have never held as much fascination for me that words on the page. My imagination creates such vivid images while reading that I'm often disappointed when a favorite read becomes fixed on film.

This feels different, yet somehow familiar. I'm reminded how decades ago when my then hubby bought an Atari computer with video game cartridges. He loved playing those games and encouraged me to join the fun. For about three months I did play a few ... PacMan & Frogger come to mind ... and I admit, I found these experiences interesting for a brief time.

My major take-away was the thought of how nice it would be to have a "Reset Button" in life ... so that when I recognized an error, I could simply start over and get it right. That is how I mastered the few games I played back then ... eventually maxing them out so that they were no longer challenging. Once I'd done so, I lost interest and never played them again ... except for a couple of times there was a PacMan machine in the waiting area of a restaurant and someone handed me a quarter. Am I dating myself? I suspect so. Such is life!

I wonder if Blogging will hold my attention just as briefly before I move on to other things? Perhaps the WORDS on the screen will keep me returning? And, of course, this opportunity to share my own words feels wonderful. I've long been a writer, but not an author. It's a clear distinction in my mind ... though I sometimes wonder if I might have spent my life as an author if someone had suggested I might do so when I was younger.

I've long written in the margins of books as I read them ... as if carrying on conversations with authors. I felt embarrassed about this habit of mine at first, until I met Marianne Williamson after a lecture and asked her to sign my copy of one of her books. After I handed it to her, my friend M told her to look inside ...(much to my chagrin)... yet when she did, I was amazed to learn that seeing my notes in the margins gave HER goosebumps because that's what she'd hoped people might do as they read her words. Who knew? Certainly not me.